South Korea defeated Syria 2-0 in Dubai, becoming the 15th nation to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
South Korea faced Syria on February 1 at Dubai’s Rashid Stadium, beating them 2-0.
The Taeguk Warriors started the game relentlessly, with shots deflected by Jeong Woo-yeung. Lee Jae-sung skillfully made smart balls down the flank to increase the pressure.
The gear changed in the 10th minute as Syria thought they were opening the scoring charts when Mahmoud Al Mawas found Omar Khribin but was ruled offside after VAR.
The South Korean team was ready to attack, with Lee receiving a nice pass from the left flank which he failed to convert. Kim Jin-su’s rebound, who had enough space to shoot from a tight angle, also went wide of the net.
On the other hand, Al Mawas scares the Korean side after a back pass from Kim Jin-Su was intercepted by a great press. Al Mawas faced the goalkeeper one-on-one and his shot went wide of the post.
Kim would redeem himself if he finally broke the deadlock after halftime. The full-back received another great cross, which he hit with a header to make it 1-0.
South Korea would keep the pressure up until the last minute, improving their goal with a beautiful passage of play. Substitute Kwon Chang-hoon appeared on the goal line after converting a heel-heel received from Lee Jae-sung on the cross before cutting inside and firing home from the edge of the box.
The loss means Syria is mathematically eliminated with two games in hand. Their next game is against Lebanon. On the other hand, South Korea faces the faction’s leader, Iran.
South Korea has qualified for the World Cup for the 10th straight season and finished 11th overall. Their best performance came in 2002 when they hosted the tournament with Japan and finished fourth that year.
✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✨
Ten in a row #World Championship tournaments! 🇰🇷💪 @theKFA | #WCQ pic.twitter.com/SPzIEzlvup
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) February 1, 2022
Who qualified?
Iran qualified for the World Cup last Thursday from the same group as South Korea and with three games in hand.
17 places still have to be secured for the qualification. The 15 countries qualified so far are: Qatar, Germany, Denmark, Brazil, France, Belgium, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, England, Switzerland, Netherlands, Argentina, Iran and South Korea.
who stays
Asia – current phase/ third round (3 have already qualified, 2 or 3 more may qualify and 6 are in the running)
Qatar is therefore automatically qualified as a host.
Iran and South Korea mathematically qualify in two games for Group A, while UAE, Lebanon and Iraq are battling for a Group A play-off spot.
Group B are led by Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia, only two of whom can qualify by March 29, while one advances to the playoffs against third-placed Group A.
The third-place playoff winner from the game between groups is not guaranteed a qualification. They face a South American counterpart in an intercontinental play-off game on June 14th.
South America – current phase/ third round (2 have already qualified, 2 or 3 more may qualify and 6 are in the competition)
Brazil and Argentina have already qualified. Ecuador, Uruguay, Peru, Chile and Colombia are fighting for third and fourth place.
There is an intercontinental playoff position for fifth place where the team meets the winner of the Oceania cycle. Bolivia is currently fighting for fifth place.
Two game days remain on March 24th and 29th, the playoffs on June 14th.
Oceania – current phase/ first round (0 have already qualified, 0 or 1 may qualify and 8 are in competition)
In Oceania, where the games will be played in Doha, the qualifying process has not yet started. There will be a group stage, a semi-final and a final.
The winner of the tournament meets the North American playoff qualifier country.
The disputed countries are New Zealand, New Caledonia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands.
The games will take place from March 24th to 30th, the playoffs will take place on June 14th.
North America – current phase/ third round (0 have already qualified, 3 or 4 may qualify and 7 are in competition)
There are four game days left in this tournament. Tournament standings include Canada, United States, Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Jamaica.
The top three teams will automatically qualify, while the team in fourth place will face off against the Oceania finalist.
The games will take place on February 2nd and March 24th-30th, the play-offs will take place on June 14th.
Africa – current phase/ third round (0 have already qualified, 5 can qualify and 10 are in competition)
The African Cycle is in its final round with a single-elimination game remaining. Whoever wins the following games will qualify from March 24th to 29th.
Egypt vs Senegal
Cameroon vs. Algeria
Ghana vs Nigeria
DR Congo vs. Morocco
Mali vs Tunisia
Europe – current phase/ second round (10 have already qualified, 3 more may qualify, 12 are in competition)
Germany, Denmark, France, Belgium, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, England, Switzerland and the Netherlands qualified as winners in their respective groups.
The second-placed teams and the two best-placed national league teams were seeded in a knockout system that will be played from March 24th to 30th.
Three countries can qualify through the following paths:
- Wales vs Austria vs Scotland vs Ukraine
2. Russia vs Poland vs Sweden vs Czech Republic
3. Portugal vs Turkey vs Italy vs North Macedonia
